Red Giant Shooter Suite 12.6 Review

Gear, Multimedia, Tech stuff, Thoughts, Video

Red Giant Shooter Suite, now available in version 12.6, is a suite of six plugins/programs that offer an array of video editing tools. I took it for a spin and will explain what’s in the package in case you are shopping around for tools like these. Here’s what you get for $299 ($149 for an academic license): PluralEyes, Offload, Denoiser II, Instant 4K, LUT Buddy, and Frames. Below is a quick breakdown of each of those.

 

PluralEyes 3.5

Red Giant PluralEyes is technically an entire program of its own, so you don’t have to worry about compatibility. It was the first Red Giant product that I had ever heard of and has always been a reliable solution for synching audio and video. It’s a classic. If you learned on Final Cut Pro 7, like I did, you probably learned to use PluralEyes when syncing your DSLR footage with the external audio that you recorded. PluralEyes has always been great and continues to be one of the best in the game. If you use Final Cut Pro X, as I do, you know that there is now a built-in audio sync feature. So for me, I don’t really need PluralEyes. Some FCPX users will still use PluralEyes because you can actually still sync inside PluralEyes and then export a sequence for use in FCPX, but I don’t really need to use that step. As far as compatibility goes for that sequence exporting feature, PluralEyes does work with the major video editing programs: FCP7, FCPX, Premiere, Avid, and Sony Vegas.

 

The PluralEyes interface

Above: A detail of the PluralEyes interface

 

LUT Buddy

Red Giant LUT Buddy will generate Look Up Tables for use in Adobe After Effects and Premiere. Essentially, Look Up Tables are little formulas for color that help you get your footage to look good in its final medium – which could be actual printed film, for instance. Let’s say you have color corrected your video project and it looks good on your calibrated monitor. Well, when you print it to actual film it may look different due to the color cast, contrast of the film, etc. It’s kind of like when you have a photo that looks good on your screen but when you print it out it’s too dark, etc. This is an age old problem for photographers. Anyways, LUT Buddy is popular industry tool for using LUTs.

 

Offload

Red Giant Offload pretty much works with every camera/memory card system out there, according to Red Giant. What it does is manage the import of your media. For me, this is the one inclusion in the Red Giant Shooter Suite that isn’t a must have. The program does verify the files and make sure that everything was transferred, which is kind of comforting. Sometimes I scroll through the finder on my Mac and look to see if everything made it, and might even check the size of the folder to make sure it’s correct, so I guess Offload would, er, offload some of the stress of making sure my precious media assets are safe and secure on my drives. You can also program it to create an automatic backup upon import.

 

Denoiser II

Red Giant Denoiser II might be the most aptly-named and straightforward tool in this collection. It, well, it denoises your footage. It’s a solid addition to your kit and can help with those clips shot at high ISOs that you’ll want to clean up without losing detail. Just like the noise reduction slider in Lightroom.

 

Instant 4K

Red Giant Instant 4K builds upon the older Instant HD, which made HD footage out of smaller resolution footage. Instant 4K makes high resolution out of HD and smaller resolution footage and is supposedly four times as fast as Instant HD was. Basically, the program has an algorithm that takes your footage, be it SD, HD, or whatever, and creates new pixels, adds sharpening, anti-aliasing, etc. to create new high resolution footage. You just pick whether you want to output your footage as 720p, 1080p, 2K, or 4K.

 

Frames

Red Giant Frames can de-interlace your interlaced footage to output as 24p. I believe this feature is built into Adobe Premiere, but Frames has added features for cropping and broadcast details, like NTSC, PAL, HD, etc.

I think this is a good package, and there is a significant savings in choosing the package deal; however, you can of course pick and choose from these six and select only the tools you want. Personally, I would skip Instant 4K, only because I would generally just shoot 4K if I needed 4K. Of course, it’s probably meant to help you in a pinch when you have a 4K project and maybe just one or two clips from an HD camera, but if that’s the case then I probably wouldn’t use the tool enough anyway. All in all, these are all fine products and I don’t see any red flags that I would want to pass on to my colleagues, so, happy editing and good luck.

 

How To Photograph Wildfire: A Safety Guide

Education, photojournalism, Still photography, Thoughts

Photo by David Ryder/Reuters. Members of the Jackson Hotshots run from the Okanogan Complex Fire as it advances unexpectedly in Twisp, Washington on August 20, 2015. The fire is the largest in state history and has claimed the lives of three firefighters, in addition to more than 170 homes and 300,000 acres.

 

In my limited experience covering wildfires as a photojournalist, I’ve learned a few key lessons that I would like to pass on to anyone interested in doing this kind of work. When I first started out, I remember feeling lost when approaching wildfires, and I don’t want anyone taking needless risks. It can be dangerous, yet important work, and you should only attempt to do it if you have the proper gear and training. Below are a few tips to get you started.

 

Your first priority should be your own safety. Remember that, and then try to make the pictures.

 

If you’re covering firefighters, your second priority should be their goals and their safety. Firefighting is the reason that they are there, and you don’t want to impede that work.

 

Research the laws of entering fire zones. Some states allows journalists free reign in an area under level III evacuation, while others only allow residents and emergency personnel.

 

Learn about wildland fires and how they may behave. You can take free online courses through the National Wildfire Coordinating Group’s training development program. Look for course S-110, Basic Wildland Fire Orientation and course S-190, Introduction to Wildland Fire Behavior. You’ll have to create a FEMA student ID before registering for these trainings.

 

Marry a banker. You are going to need to invest in a lot of safety gear on top of that camera gear you own. You must have all of this if you want to protect yourself in addition to being taken seriously and gaining access to crews working: Fire shelter (new generation; look for the blue case), 8″ wildland firefighting boots (look for “NFPA certified”), Nomex pants and shirt, hard hat with chin strap, leather gloves, and eye protection. You may also want to shop for a Nomex hood, a headlamp, and clear goggles. You can shop on Craigslist, Ebay, logging and work stores, or the following websites: nationalfirefighter.com, thefirestore.com, malloryco.com, Benmeadows.com, chiefsupply.com, wildlandwarehouse.com. I prefer The Fire Store.

 

Learn how to use your fire shelter. The Washington State Department of Natural Resources hosts a training for journalists every year in Seattle and your region may have similar resources.

 

Photo by David Ryder. A destroyed car, golf cart, and home are pictured near Alta Lake Golf Course after the area was overtaken by the Carlton Complex Fire, which can be seen burning in the distance, near Pateros, Washington on July 19, 2014. The fire was the largest in state history until this year’s Okanogan Complex fire.

 

Prepare for working in hostile environments and learn how to care for yourself and colleagues in a medical emergency. I have taken two hostile environment/crisis zone workshops and I highly recommend both: Reporting Safely in Crisis Zones (Columbia University) and Hostile Environment Training (Hawthorne Proactive).

 

When approaching a fire scene, know your exit routes and park your vehicle pointed in the direction you plan to escape. Leave your keys on the seat or in the ignition in case someone needs to move your vehicle. Make sure that you are out of the way and that fire engines can get by.

 

Pack a lot of food and water in a backpack. Firefighters work shifts that can push 24 hours and if you really want to do this, you’re going to have to be there with them. If you have the chance to embed with a wildland crew, practice sleeping while standing up and remember that it’s hot during the day but may be ice cold at night! Be prepared.

 

Approach victims and scenes of devastation with care and empathy. The folks you’ll meet have been through a lot and may not want to talk to you. Sometimes you’ve got to just leave them alone and walk away; other times they will invite you into their lives to witness something extraordinary. Also, never enter private property without permission. If no one is around at that burnt house you just found, you’re going to have to photograph it from the end of the driveway.

 

Care for yourself if you experience symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder. If you experience things like bad dreams, poor sleep, wanting to sleep all the time, isolating yourself, feeling numb, feeling irritable, overreacting, drinking too much or using drugs, etc., you may need to seek help. The Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma may have useful resources for you.

 

Good luck and I hope this post can help photographers make good pictures and stay as safe as possible.

 

Photo by David Ryder. Volunteer firefighter Ray Sandy ignites a controlled burn shortly before sunrise while fighting the Okanogan Complex fire near Brewster, Washington on August 15, 2015.